The Great Solar Eclipse of 2017 crossed the continent, from Oregon to South Carolina, and gave millions of people the chance to witness one of the most awe-inspiring events in the natural world.

But you had to be within the "path of totality", a narrow band across the earth's surface several thousand miles long but only about 70 miles wide. Outside that band you would only see a partial eclipse, not a total eclipse.

And there is no such thing as a "partial total eclipse", despite the impression blogs and the news media might give. I honestly think that's why so many people misunderstand the utter beauty of the spectacle; they may have seen a partial eclipse in the past that was total somewhere else, and even though they weren't in the path the news kept gushing about it being a total eclipse, so they assume they must have seen a total eclipse and just didn't find it all that impressive.


Posted by Dan 08/29/2017, revised 09/06/2017

Taking advantage of gorgeous views and challenging terrain, the Lake Tahoe Marathon Weekend has a little something for everyone.

The weekend features not just a marathon, but your choice of three marathons (Friday, Saturday, Sunday), or for endurance junkies, the option to do all 3 (The Tahoe Triple). Same goes for the half marathon (The Trifecta) and the ultra (The Triple Dare): 72 miles all the way around Lake Tahoe!

... And yes, someone did run the full 216.6 miles in three days (46 hours 27 minutes). See Rob Carter's finish video.

For the rest of us with more modest goals, the menu of events included duathlon, 10k, 5k, kids superhero run, and a number of aquatic events. There were kayak and paddle board races, and open water swim races.

I felt a little greedy looking at all the events to register for, but in the end I opted for the 2 mile swim as one of the more unique choices.


Posted by Kimberly 09/16/2014

Yup, I'm taking over my page now! Since 2003 i haven't done anything except a trip on my bike last summer. Well, I guess that about brings us up to date. Moving on.

My summer was spent in the wonderful little village of San Luis Obispo, nestled against the California coastal range, where i participated in an internship at the 'we're too good for Nik' Cal Poly University. Let me just say, SLO rocks! As do all the wonderful people i met there this summer, and I can't wait to return next year.

We'll cut into this little reminiscion with a recount of my last mini-backpacking trip near Sequoia National Park, so i can put in some cool pictures.

A friend from the internship and I headed out after work on friday for a weekend backpacking trip in the Sierra's. We got in late and stayed at a little walk in camp that was tucked waaay up a small winding backroad near the trailhead. This was also the only bear sighting on our trip. We awoke early to find a black bear not more than 50 yards off in the camp area. He wasn't interested in our food though, just beating up the trees around there.

Backpacking in the High Sierras

Posted by nik 08/22/2008, revised 08/22/2008

Nik and I have spent the last 3 months exploring around Thailand, Laos, and Cambodia. After spending a fair amount of time in SE Asia, I think it is time for some SE Asia Superlative Awards (*Vietnam must be excluded from this ceremony, as a visit there has been saved for another trip). I would like all of you to keep in mind that these awards are not "how it is." I am not saying I have done a complete sampling of each of the countries and have collected what I believe to be "the truth." These awards are simply based off of my experiences in these countries, which may differ drastically from another traveler's experiences. So please enjoy the Best and the Worst, as accounted by Whitney.

Food (start with the important one)

Best: Thailand, hands down, no question. Curries, spices, fried dishes, fun nuggets... all done perfectly. In Thailand, I can pretty much walk into just about anywhere and get something enjoyable, if not out of this world.

Some delicious Thai food. Can't get enough of this stuff!

Worst: Laos. I'm sorry, but Laos didn't bring it. I actually skipped meals in Laos (which anyone knows is not like me at all!) because they just disappointed me. They did, however, own on the sticky rice! That was their sole contribution to good food.

Coffee

Best: Laos. This partially redeems Laos for their bad food. Lao coffee is amazing. It is possibly, if I may be so bold, some of the best coffee I've had.

Worst: Thailand. NesCafe everywhere! You find the occasional establishment advertising, "Real coffee!" as if it's something out of this world, when in fact, in most cases, it's still just a Denny's-status cup of coffee.

Beer

Best: Laos. To label any southeast Asian beer with the word "best" is a bit difficult (especially coming from beer-tastic Oregon), but BeerLao is still a tasty beer. It's tasty, it comes in big bottles, and it's cheap! (within the country)

BeerLao - good stuff!

Worst: Cambodia. Anchor Beer seemed to be the country's beer... bleh! It's watery, tastes like shoes, and manages to leave you with a throbbing headache the next day after only 2 beers. Something's not right about that.

Posted by Whitney 12/12/2008